One of my Golf Mates has a Daughter married to a Recruiting Sergeant in the US Army. He is over in the US quite often and mostly seems to run into Trumpeteers. Despite what a personal grub he is, and despite achieving SFA, they can't get enough of him.

(The Sergeant and Family are heading near your way...to Tacoma....pretty soon, Seth.)

Aussie wrote:One of my Golf Mates has a Daughter married to a Recruiting Sergeant in the US Army. He is over in the US quite often and mostly seems to run into Trumpeteers. Despite what a personal grub he is, and despite achieving SFA, they can't get enough of him.

(The Sergeant and Family are heading near your way...to Tacoma....pretty soon, Seth.)

Have friends in the USA who are both for and against the rump, Those for, reject anything that shows him for what he is, even when undeniable evidence is provided for them, which doesn't say much for their mental state or worldly understanding. Those against him say it's good they have got rid of the dedicated party presidents, but bad that the rump is so terribly ignorant and stupid, he's destroying the country in the process. When questions the way he is destroying it, they mention climate change, alternative energy, equality, health care, gun control and the biggest problem according to them is foreign affairs and alliances.

So far the rump has threatened his allies, withdrawn from most world projects designed to mitigate global warming and peace, placed tariffs on just about every countries goods, closed down lots of imported goods and done virtually nothing else, positive for the country in real terms. He's just walked out of the attempt to mitigate the disgusting and environmentally destructive plastic rubbish the world is becoming saturated in. He's withdrawn from just about all trade and other agreements with everyone.

"An agreement on tracking thousands of types of plastic waste emerged at the end of a two-week meeting of United Nations-backed conventions on plastic waste and toxic, hazardous chemicals.One-hundred-and-eighty-seven participants agreed to make global trade in plastic waste more transparent and better regulated, and to ensure that its management is safer for human health and the environment.Discarded plastic clutters pristine land, floats in huge masses in oceans and rivers and entangles wildlife, sometimes with deadly results.

Nearly every country in the world has agreed upon a legally binding framework to reduce the pollution from plastic waste — but not the United States, United Nations environmental officials say. An agreement on tracking thousands of types of plastic waste emerged at the end of a two-week meeting of United Nations-backed conventions on plastic waste and toxic, hazardous chemicals.

One-hundred-and-eighty-seven participants agreed to make global trade in plastic waste more transparent and better regulated, and to ensure that its management is safer for human health and the environment.

If the rump and others think isolation the USA from their allies and opponents, will improve their country, they're in for a huge shock. That directions only outcome is economic, social, strategic and defence disaster. Not a place I'd like to see our country heading to. Take away US allies and they are very vulnerable, there is already talk of them being removed from the 5 eyes strategic agreement, if the do that they will lose the ability to monitor the globe. Five eyes keeps the Russians and Chinese at bay, because they can't do anything without 5 eyes seeing and hearing them. The most important part of that agreement, is Aus and the fact is Aus holds the cards in world surveillance monitoring and communications of the planet.

The rump says "enough is enough:, he's so right, "enough is enough of the rump". I don't mind and don't really care, interesting to watch to collapse unfold.

you might not, but there are many who voted for trump because they believed they were the forgotten ones, who can't afford to pay more.

Not that I care. A trade war with US and China will only benefit Australia if we play it right.

John, if we can achieve fair trade with China, it will be good for the "forgotten ones".

What's not good is for our producers to migrate to China or elsewhere, creating production jobs in foreign countries, gradually turning our society into a "service industry" society of "haves" and "have nots".

Higher prices on Chinese goods is a short-run effect. I'm looking at the long-term good of getting equal trade with China.

“I shall pass through this world but once. Any good that I can do or any kindness I can show to any human being, let me do it now. Let me not defer nor neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again.” - Stephen Grellet

you might not, but there are many who voted for trump because they believed they were the forgotten ones, who can't afford to pay more.

Not that I care. A trade war with US and China will only benefit Australia if we play it right.

John, if we can achieve fair trade with China, it will be good for the "forgotten ones".

What's not good is for our producers to migrate to China or elsewhere, creating production jobs in foreign countries, gradually turning our society into a "service industry" society of "haves" and "have nots".

Higher prices on Chinese goods is a short-run effect. I'm looking at the long-term good of getting equal trade with China.

you can only get free trade if the safety and wages of the other country are in line with yours...… Basically the same human rights of the workers....

Bongalong... for some reason women are just so superior to anything that ever existed or will ever exist!
Shellandshilo1956 ….. Even an annoying troll, has the right to free speech.

you might not, but there are many who voted for trump because they believed they were the forgotten ones, who can't afford to pay more.

Not that I care. A trade war with US and China will only benefit Australia if we play it right.

John, if we can achieve fair trade with China, it will be good for the "forgotten ones".

What's not good is for our producers to migrate to China or elsewhere, creating production jobs in foreign countries, gradually turning our society into a "service industry" society of "haves" and "have nots".

Higher prices on Chinese goods is a short-run effect. I'm looking at the long-term good of getting equal trade with China.

you can only get free trade if the safety and wages of the other country are in line with yours...… Basically the same human rights of the workers....

There's some truth to that. It wouldn't bother me if America insisted on higher wages and better safety for workers as a condition of trading with those countries.

“I shall pass through this world but once. Any good that I can do or any kindness I can show to any human being, let me do it now. Let me not defer nor neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again.” - Stephen Grellet

you might not, but there are many who voted for trump because they believed they were the forgotten ones, who can't afford to pay more.

Not that I care. A trade war with US and China will only benefit Australia if we play it right.

John, if we can achieve fair trade with China, it will be good for the "forgotten ones".

What's not good is for our producers to migrate to China or elsewhere, creating production jobs in foreign countries, gradually turning our society into a "service industry" society of "haves" and "have nots".

Higher prices on Chinese goods is a short-run effect. I'm looking at the long-term good of getting equal trade with China.

Services industry is exactly what Australia has become... mining boom every thirty years but that employs bugger all people AND puts the price of houses through the roof and that is our major problem exactly now...

you might not, but there are many who voted for trump because they believed they were the forgotten ones, who can't afford to pay more.

Not that I care. A trade war with US and China will only benefit Australia if we play it right.

John, if we can achieve fair trade with China, it will be good for the "forgotten ones".

What's not good is for our producers to migrate to China or elsewhere, creating production jobs in foreign countries, gradually turning our society into a "service industry" society of "haves" and "have nots".

Higher prices on Chinese goods is a short-run effect. I'm looking at the long-term good of getting equal trade with China.

you can only get free trade if the safety and wages of the other country are in line with yours...… Basically the same human rights of the workers....

you might not, but there are many who voted for trump because they believed they were the forgotten ones, who can't afford to pay more.

Not that I care. A trade war with US and China will only benefit Australia if we play it right.

John, if we can achieve fair trade with China, it will be good for the "forgotten ones".

What's not good is for our producers to migrate to China or elsewhere, creating production jobs in foreign countries, gradually turning our society into a "service industry" society of "haves" and "have nots".

Higher prices on Chinese goods is a short-run effect. I'm looking at the long-term good of getting equal trade with China.

you can only get free trade if the safety and wages of the other country are in line with yours...… Basically the same human rights of the workers....

There's some truth to that. It wouldn't bother me if America insisted on higher wages and better safety for workers as a condition of trading with those countries.

TRUMP SEEKS HUGE SUBSIDY TO BUFFER HIS TRADE WAR President Donald Trump is seeking an additional $15 billion in U.S. subsidies to protect farmers from the devastating impact of his trade war with China. That’s on top of $12 billion already earmarked for the farmers to help them weather the fallout. [HuffPost]

MSCI’s gauge of stocks across the globe shed 1.90 per cent, its biggest one-day drop in more than five months as it touched a two-month low.

China said it would impose higher tariffs on a range of US goods, striking back in its trade war with Washington shortly after President Donald Trump warned it not to retaliate in the long-running trade dispute between the world’s two biggest economies.

you might not, but there are many who voted for trump because they believed they were the forgotten ones, who can't afford to pay more.

Not that I care. A trade war with US and China will only benefit Australia if we play it right.

John, if we can achieve fair trade with China, it will be good for the "forgotten ones".

What's not good is for our producers to migrate to China or elsewhere, creating production jobs in foreign countries, gradually turning our society into a "service industry" society of "haves" and "have nots".

Higher prices on Chinese goods is a short-run effect. I'm looking at the long-term good of getting equal trade with China.

you can only get free trade if the safety and wages of the other country are in line with yours...… Basically the same human rights of the workers....

In other words: there is no free trade!

You are correct. I appreciate your efforts but no-one is really listening Bongalong.

I think Trump will not hesitate to defend the country, but I don't think he believes in being the world's policeman, and I don't think he likes wars of choice.

Had Hillary been elected, by now we'd be in a shooting war with Russia in Syria.

“I shall pass through this world but once. Any good that I can do or any kindness I can show to any human being, let me do it now. Let me not defer nor neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again.” - Stephen Grellet